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Corinthians 12:7-10

Wednesday, 12 March 2014

What is wrong with this picture?

Picture: Sacred Heart, Hove

What is going on here?

Ring-a-ring-a-Roses?

Pin the tale on the donkey?

Sing-a-long with Father?

Of course, it is holy Mass although, it looks rather unholy to me.

You would never, ever, ever, see such shenanigans at a Tridentine Latin Mass (what are we calling it these days?)

Once we could just say 'Latin Mass', but now we have a whole range of titles - I do wish people could make up their minds.

But, I digress.

The Church is The Sacred Heart, Hove. A good and well designed website, pity about the content.

And the Catholic Church seems incapable of learning from the track record that shows a great falling away from the Faith during the secondary part of a child's education.

Holding hands and dancing around an altar may attract for a short time but then....children, as they mature, are too intelligent to put up with such tosh.

18 comments:

Sadly, this once very traditional church has been turned into a me-fest, courtesy of +Kieran's appointment strategy. Attending Mass there is now a teeth-gritting exercise - and that's at the later (Latin sung propers) Mass with a largely elderly congregation. There seems to be not very much visibility between the very young and the very old. There are some good things, however. One-hour Exposition on Monday and Tuesday mornings before Mass and for the whole of Monday during Lent and Advent.I have the strong sense that in another age the priest would have made a very great trawler of souls. Unfortunately, he was clearly formed, and is informed, by the God loves-us-all-and-we-are-saved chumminess of V2. The Sacred Heart has become very feminised which is, presumably, to +Kieran's taste. That said, it's worse at the Catholic church along the road.

this is the shocker about much contemporary Catholicism. the 'suffer the little children' quote has been redifined, 'renewed' and used as a crow bar to smash over the head of every adult who knows they are an adult who dare 'suffer' the childish ( not child-like) mindless, protestant Sunday-school ************* that priests who would rather wrap poison ivy than a roman collar around their necks serve up every Sunday.-oh ordained inane - why don,t you just become kindergarten destroyers or folk-artists?

Lord have mercy. These children are being given a very strong message against the truth of God, His commandments, His Church which will lead them to abandoning the Faith (or perhaps more accurately what they've been misled into thinking is the Faith). MisleadIng the young as to the true doctrine of the Faith and morals will ensure that many will come to hold the Church in contempt as they grow up.

p.s. not that all or indeed many folk artists are 'kindergarten destroyers'. by kds I meant people who destroy the purpose of kindergarten, which is, after all, to learn how to grow up (as in not make arrested development into the cardinal virtue).

I wondered when a comment like that of Petrus would turn up! I have been surprised by the number of people I have spoken to at the church I attend who have told me they are really in the Sacred Heart parish. I always understood it was very 'traditional' but this post has perhaps given me the reason.

I know of people who have been made to feel more than a little bit unwelcome at the Sacred Heart. There is a definite air of intolerance towards anyone who isn't on board with the whole "happy clappy" thing.

After my reconversion, back in the 90s, our parishes were doing this sort of nonsense. It did not take long for me to feel uncomfortable about and I stopped gathering around the altar even though the priest invited us to. Very shortly thereafter I also stopped receiving Holy Communion in the hand.

I see they have a female Pastoral Assistant, which in of itself doesn't have to be bad. I just wonder if anyone mentioned that they would prefer a different direction for the parish to take, whether that person would be up for being burnt at the stake.

How on the earth do you go about wanting and expecting for something like this to change at your Church? Whom do you approach? Is it even possible, or DOA?

It's amazing how many people "parish hop now" or even consider it an act of great forbearance to remain instead of leaving. How sad?

But just imagine things on the other side of the fence. Can you imagine the hooha it would cause if a lady at an SSPX Mass refused to wear her mantilla because local diocesan Father who says the TLM doesn't expect her to wear it at his Masses.

Once upon the time the Sacred Heart Church in Brighton/Hove, had Rev Carl Davies. Father Carl was removed from this parish by Bishop Kieran. Father Carl was Orthodox and strict and great speaker but the Liberal Church Committee did not like him at all.

The priest in the picture is Father Kevin Dring, he was Bishop Kieran's secretary before going to Peru on mission work. When he arrived at Sacred Heart he also started celebrating mass in Spanish, though his Spanish is not that fluent. After the Spanish mass, he organised a gathering with Salsa music in the Parish Hall. The mass in Spanish was stopped because Father noticed that the Spanish speakers decreased in numbers. There was also a clash with the English congregation who did not like the idea.

Father Dring is connected with the Carismatics/Protestants in this city and has introduced his ideas during the masses. Once I heard him encouraging the parishioners to go and pray with the congregation of CCK (Church of Christ the King), a protestant sect, in the London Rd area. Fr Kevin still encourages this type of Ecumenism.

Unfortunately, there is so much spiritual poverty in Brighton. This is just an example of what is going on here. Some of the Catholics Charismatics go to mass on a Sunday morning at the Sacred Heart and in the evening might decide to go to do practice some Ecumenism with the sects (CCK et al.) This picture also is a mirror of the situation of the Catholic schools were the Catholic foundations/values and moral teachings have been replaced by a secular paradigm that does not provide the real Catholic essence that young people and children need in order to become beacons of faith.

Richard, your blog offers visitors the option to select the profile 'Anonymous' when commenting. It is possible to remove that option. Either way, most of your commentators are using pseudonyms. As regards the picture you have chosen to upload, I am not convinced that targeting individual churches in such manner is the most charitable or correct way to deal with liturgical abuses.

Anon @ 10.08 - you are talking to a technophobe here. I have meddled with it but am unsure as to whether I've been successful.I can see nothing wrong in cherry picking churches that are flagrant in their abuse of the Holy Mass. But, I would like to hear your suggestions as to how you would approach the matter. God bless.

Other readers in Brighton might not have heard that a second parish is now celebrating an evening TLM each Thursday in Lent at St Mary's Preston Park. The first one was last Thursday and I only found out due to a phone call from a friend who happened to attend Mass there the previous week. Spiritual poverty in Brighton? Maybe, but not if you know where to go!

What is wrong with this picture?Answer: Many things are wrong with this picture!I am Catholic and I feel free in the Lord to have an opinion. This is one of my fundamental human rights and I believe that is not uncharitable at all to comment on issues that touch different aspects of Catholic identity and Liturgy. I do not think it is immature to speak up and ask for answers and a critical analysis of the status quo of the Catholic environment in Brighton and worldwide. I really appreciate the opportunity to add some of my thoughts to this debate. I believe in a living God and my faith is alive and my intellect is full of ideas. I always thank God for this.I live in Brighton, and I remember vividly the beautiful sermons and high rhetoric of Rev. Carl Davies. The critical analysis that one the anonymous commentator describes is very accurate. I remember that the Church Council acted in such a way that exercised its power. They simply did not like his style and straightforward rhetoric and that is sad. It must be stressed that these people acted in a very uncharitable manner and His Lordship send him far away. This a true fact and I was a witness of this. This is really sad state of affairs.I agree with another anonymous commentator Pelerin who writes about the positive signs, despite the spiritual poverty in Brighton. Definitely, if you look around you can find the path. The St Mary Magdalene Parish and St Mary Surrenden do have priest who celebrate mass in the Extraordinary Form. Congratulations to both Fr Raymond Blake and Fr Bruno Witchalls for this!

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